Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta
by Chungah
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Garlicky shrimp and fettuccine topped with fresh Parmesan! Quick for busy weeknights but fancy enough for weekend company! So simple so good.
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Why you’ll love this garlic butter shrimp pasta
- 20 minute quick pasta recipe. This dinner comes together so quickly. You can whip up the garlicky, buttery shrimp so fast while your pasta cooks through.
- So comforting, so hearty. We’re talking easy comfort food with quick pan-fried garlicky shrimp, and sneaked in leafy greens (for all the picky eaters), all topped with freshly grated Parmesan. And with wide, long strand fettuccine noodles, we have just enough space to coat all that silky buttery heavenly goodness.
- Perfect for all occasions. With its fast cook time, this restaurant-quality dish is perfect for family during those busy weeknights, for friends and weekend company. Simply dress it up with some crusty bread and a simple side salad – they will be so impressed!
types of shrimp
Wild caught shrimp vs. farmed shrimp
Farmed shrimp are raised in controlled environments, whereas wild caught shrimp have been caught in their natural habitats by fishermen. Wild caught shrimp is generally preferred over farmed shrimp primarily due to taste.
Frozen vs. fresh shrimp
Unless you reside in a coastal area, the “fresh shrimp” on display at your local grocery store have already been previously frozen at sea. Frozen shrimp offers ultimate freshness (flash-frozen as soon as they are caught) and flexibility, using only what you need for dinner. Bottom line, frozen shrimp will taste better and cook better.
How to make garlic butter shrimp pasta
- Boil the pasta. Cook the pasta (use long strand pasta such as fettuccine, linguine or spaghetti) until al dente, draining well.
- Cook the shrimp. While the pasta cooks, season the shrimp with salt and pepper before cooking on a hot cast iron skillet with all the aromatics. Cook in batches if needed – overcrowding the pan will lead to poor searing and chewy, rubbery shrimp!
- Combine everything together. Add the remaining butter, cooked pasta, leafy greens (arugula or spinach), Parmesan and cooked shrimp to the pan.
- Serve. Finish with parsley and an additional sprinkle of Parmesan, if needed.
what to serve with shrimp pasta
Tools For This Recipe
Large cast iron skillet
Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta: Frequently Asked Questions
You can thaw frozen shrimp overnight, transferring it from the freezer to the fridge the day before. For a quick thaw, you can run them under cold water until completely thawed, about 5-10 minutes. Pat them dry as thoroughly as possible to remove any excess moisture (so they can brown nicely and evenly).
Fresh or dried long strands of pasta such as fettuccine, linguine or spaghetti will all work very well.
Absolutely! You can substitute thyme or rosemary (dried or fresh!) or any other herb of your choosing. And because dried herbs are often more potent/concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. The correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs to 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
Baby spinach and kale are both nutrient-rich and great alternatives for sneaked-in leafy greens.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 days.
Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta
Video
Ingredients
- 8 ounces fettuccine, linguine, or spaghetti
- 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 cups baby arugula or spinach
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.
- Season shrimp with salt and pepper, to taste; set aside.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Working in batches, add shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until pink, about 2-3 minutes; set aside.
- Melt remaining 6 tablespoons butter in the skillet. Stir in pasta, arugula and Parmesan until arugula begins to wilt, about 2 minutes. Stir in shrimp.
- Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
Equipment
Notes
- Fresh pasta goes a long way. Use homemade pasta whenever possible as it is much smoother and silkier (and cooks much faster than store-bought!).
- Use high-quality shrimp. Medium or large wild-caught shrimp are much more meatier and juicier than farm-raised shrimp.
- Buy frozen shrimp. For superior quality and freshness, use frozen shrimp but avoid the bags with freezer burn. Opt for a quick thaw under cold running water for about 5-10 minutes, drying thoroughly.
- Know your shrimp size. Shrimp size is calculated on number of shrimp per pound. The smaller the number, the larger your shrimp. There are about 40-50 medium shrimp per pound.
- Long strand-like pasta is ideal. Fettuccine is a great pasta to use because it holds up sauce very well. Linguine, spaghetti or angel hair pasta are also good options.
- Add in leafy greens. This is a great recipe to sneak in leafy greens for those picky eaters. Arugula, spinach, kale, collard greens or swiss chard are all great additions.
Did you make this recipe?
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Can I add sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts to this recipe?
Absolutely!
Made it tonight and it was a hit. My husband loved it and my picky 22 year old grandson said it was delicious. Coming from him that’s saying something as he is a chef. This will be a keeper. Thank you. I used frozen shrimp and spinach and an extra garlic clove.
This was legit DELISH! I would say that it was just a touch too much butter for my liking. Not that it was bad – it was just a touch too rich. I’d be happy with about half or maybe 2/3 of the amount. Used a pound of huge frozen shrimp and a container of fresh spinach. This was a nice quick dish that would be excellent to throw together for guests
Very flavorful but my cheese melted all together, where did I go wrong
I usually add it when the burner is turned off right at the end. and don’t *immediatly* stir it all around
I made it tonight!! It was delicious and my husband loved it, too.
I made this dish with large frozen, wild caught shrimp.
I used 4 cups of spinach, more red pepper, and three times the garlic.
For pasta I used Edeme spaghetti, more like angel hair. It was delishious, my husband called it outstanding. Even though I tripled the garlic, I did not find it very garlicky. I used half of the rewired butter (unsalted), and added a small dash of olive oil.
I will do this receipe again, probably adding roasted tomatoes.
I made this tonight and it was so easy to make and it was absolutely delicious! I knew I wanted to cook shrimp and I came across this recipe and I’m glad I did. I’ll be adding this into dinner rotation.
Question : you state that fresh pasta is better than dried, and I agree. However, the recipe asks for 8 ounces of pasta, would this be dry or fresh? This recipe looks delicious and I’m anxious to try it.
I made this for dinner last night. It was so delicious and I didn’t change a thing except add a bit more red pepper flakes as I like my pasta a bit spicy.
Love your recipes and have so many of them in my meal rotation!
This was fantastic and it really did come together lightening fast! The longest thing to do in this recipe is peel the shrimp and chop the garlic. Super flavorful and sort of healthy. I may sub some of the butter with olive oil next time but wow this was so good.
Love this! Thank you for sharing your great simple recipes!
I made it with spinach and it was absolutely amazing! We bought it to our friends’ house and enjoyed it together. I also added a small amount of chicken broth and white wine. Fantastic!! Thank you!
Really like this so simple to make
I made this for dinner tonight with a few changes. Used fresh basil instead of oregano and added a fresh chopped tomato for additional veggies. Also, used cheese tortellini as my pasta. Delicious!!! So quick and easy. Definitely adding to my rotation.
We truly love this recipe. Because we like spicy, I do add a little blackening seasoning with the salt and pepper on the shrimp. I also use less butter… but it’s a great recipe. Thank you.
Eeek! No unsalted butter! What to do?! Google is of no use!
Use salted butter! (I never use unsalted butter. If you are concerned that things will be too salty, just decrease the amount of salt called for in the recipe.)
My family loves it. I have to double the recipe!
This just moved to the top of my list for pasta dishes! This was so good!
This is one of my top 10 favorite recipes on ever. Make it just as it says, or double everything and it comes out just as good. If you wanna mess with it, maybe add a little white wine and reduce it down, or double the arugula. But really the recipe is perfect as is.
I love this recipe, spinach maybe subbed for arugula. BUT I like about a 1/2 cup of ‘pasta water’ when it is combined. This takes the greasiness away and it is wonderful!